document_title: The Jungle Book (2016 film)

question_text: who plays king louie in the new jungle book

text: The Jungle Book (2016 film)

text: Plot[edit]

text: Mowgli is a "man cub" raised by the wolf Raksha and her pack, led by Akela, in an Indian jungle ever since he was brought to them as a baby by the black panther Bagheera. Bagheera trains Mowgli to learn the ways of the wolves, but the boy faces certain challenges and falls behind his wolf siblings, while Akela disapproves of him using human tricks like building tools instead of learning the ways of the pack.

text: One day, during the dry season, the jungle animals gather to drink the water that remains as part of a truce during a drought that enables the jungle's wildlife to drink without fear of being eaten by their predators. The truce is disrupted when a scarred tiger named Shere Khan arrives, detecting Mowgli's scent in the large crowd. Resentful against man for scarring him, he issues a warning that he will kill Mowgli at the end of the drought. After the drought ends, the wolves debate whether they should keep Mowgli or not. Mowgli decides to leave the jungle for the safety of his pack. Bagheera agrees with the decision and volunteers to guide him to the nearby man village.

text: En route, Shere Khan ambushes them and injures Bagheera, but Mowgli manages to escape. Later, Mowgli meets an enormous python named Kaa who hypnotizes him. While under her influence, Mowgli sees a vision of his father being mauled while protecting him from Shere Khan. The vision also warns of the destructive power of the "red flower" (fire). Kaa attempts to devour Mowgli, but she is attacked by a large brown sloth bear named Baloo, rescuing an unconscious Mowgli. Baloo and Mowgli bond while retrieving some difficult-to-access honey for Baloo, and the boy agrees to stay with Baloo until the winter season arrives. Upon learning that Mowgli has left the jungle, Shere Khan kills Akela and threatens the pack to lure Mowgli out.

text: Bagheera eventually finds Mowgli and Baloo and is angered that Mowgli has not joined the humans as agreed, but Baloo calms him down and persuades both of them to sleep on it. During the night, Mowgli finds a herd of Indian elephants gathered around a ditch and uses his vines to save a baby elephant from the ditch. Although Baloo and Bagheera are both impressed, Baloo realizes that he cannot guarantee Mowgli's safety after learning that he is being hunted by Shere Khan. Baloo agrees to push Mowgli away to get him to continue onward to the man village.

text: Mowgli is kidnapped by the "Bandar-log" (monkeys) who present him to their leader, a giant ape named King Louie. Assuming that all humans can make fire, King Louie offers Mowgli protection from Shere Khan in exchange for it. Baloo distracts King Louie while Bagheera tries to sneak him out, but their plan is discovered. As King Louie chases Mowgli through his temple, he informs Mowgli of Akela's death. King Louie's rampage eventually causes his temple to collapse on top of him. Furious that Baloo and Bagheera never told him about Akela's death, Mowgli goes to confront Shere Khan alone.

text: Mowgli steals a lit torch at the village to use as a weapon and heads back to the jungle, accidentally starting a wildfire in the process. He confronts Shere Khan, who argues that Mowgli has made himself the enemy of the jungle by causing the wildfire. Mowgli throws the torch into the water, giving Shere Khan the advantage. Baloo, Bagheera, and the wolf pack intervene and hold Shere Khan off, giving Mowgli enough time to set a trap. He lures Shere Khan up a dead tree and onto a branch, which breaks under the tiger's weight and Shere Khan falls into the fire to his death. Mowgli then directs the elephants to divert the river and put out the fire.

text: In the aftermath with Shere Khan no longer a threat, Raksha becomes the new leader of the wolf pack. Mowgli decides to utilize his equipment and tricks for his own use, having found his true home and calling with his wolf family, Baloo, and Bagheera.

text: Cast[edit]

text:
Neel Sethi as Mowgli, a young boy who was raised by wolves.
Kendrick Reyes as toddler Mowgli
Ritesh Rajan as Mowgli's father

text: Voice cast[edit]

text:
Bill Murray as Baloo, a sloth bear who befriends Mowgli.
Ben Kingsley as Bagheera, a black panther who is Mowgli's mentor and protector.
Idris Elba as Shere Khan, a fearsome, scar-faced tiger with a grudge against humans.
Lupita Nyong'o as Raksha, a female wolf who is Mowgli's adoptive mother.
Scarlett Johansson as Kaa, an enormous python.
Giancarlo Esposito as Akela, a male wolf who leads the pack.
Christopher Walken as King Louie, a giant ape who rules the Bandar-log.
Garry Shandling as Ikki, a porcupine that observes the Water Truce.[1]
Brighton Rose as Grey Brother,  a wolf cub that is Mowgli's adoptive brother.[1]
Jon Favreau as Fred, a Pygmy Hog.[1]
Sam Raimi as a giant squirrel.[1]
Russell Peters as Rocky, a rhinoceros.[1]
Madeleine Favreau as Raquel, a rhinoceros.[1]
Sara Arrington as an antelope.[1]

text: Emjay Anthony, Max Favreau, Chloe Hechter, Asher Blinkoff, Knox Gagnon, Sasha Schrieber, and Kai Schrieber voice the Young Wolves.[1]

text: Dee Bradley Baker, Artie Esposito, Sean Johnson, and Allan Trautman provide additional animal voices.[1]

text: Production[edit]

text: Development and casting[edit]

text:
"The idea of going out to the jungle and shooting this, it just felt like it wouldn't have the magic that the 1967 film had had. There was a dreamlike quality to it. There was a surreal quality to it. It was a high-water mark for character animation and to me, that's what I remember about it. And so I wanted to make sure we preserved that...But what [Alan] Horn said was: Look at the technology. Look at Life of Pi, Avatar. Why not use the technology to create a whole world that transports you? Let's really embrace this new technology and see what we can do if we push its limit."
— Jon Favreau on approaching the film's technical intent.[9]

tag: div

text: On July 9, 2013, Walt Disney Pictures announced that a live-action adaptation of Rudyard Kipling's short story collection The Jungle Book was in development, with Justin Marks set to write the script.[10] The film would be Disney's second live-action adaptation of Kipling's works, following the 1994 film and the 1998 direct-to-video film Mowgli's Story; and the studio's fourth overall after the 1967 animated film.[11] Jon Favreau was confirmed as director on November 5, 2013.[12] Favreau as a child used to watch Disney's 1967 animated film.[13] He felt the need to strike a balance between the two films by retaining the buoyant spirit of the 1967 film, including some of its memorable songs, while crafting a film with more realism and peril. He also stressed the importance of nature and realized how things have shifted during Kipling's time and now, "In Kipling's time, nature was something to be overcome. Now nature is something to be protected."[13] He was encouraged by Walt Disney Studios chairman Alan Horn to take advantage of the film's setting and story as an opportunity to use the latest advancements in photorealistic rendering, computer-generated imagery, and motion capture technologies.[14] The story of the film is not independently taken from Kipling's works, but also borrows cinematic inspirations from other films, including the child-mentor relationship in Shane (1953), the establishment of rules in a dangerous world from Goodfellas (1990) and the use of a shadowy jungle figure in Apocalypse Now (1979).[13]

text: The cast was announced between March and August 2014, with Idris Elba being announced to voice Shere Khan during early stages and Bill Murray eventually confirmed as the voice of Baloo in August 2014. Between then, Scarlett Johansson, Ben Kingsley, and Christopher Walken were confirmed to play Kaa, Bagheera, and King Louie.[15][16][17][18] Favreau decided to cast Johansson to play Kaa, originally a male character, as he felt the original film was "a little too male-oriented."[19] Favreau and Marks noticed the lack of female characters in the 1967 film version and wanted to address that by featuring Raksha's character more prominently, as in Kipling's tales.[13] Lupita Nyong'o was cast as Raksha as Favreau believed her voice imbued the emotion required for the role, "Lupita has tremendous depth of emotion in her performance. There's an emotional underpinning she brings, and a strength, and we wanted that for this surrogate mother. Much of that comes from her voice."[20] Favreau also decided to change King Louie from an orangutan to a gigantopithecus due to the fact that orangutans are not native to India, where the story takes place.[6] His character was given a slight alteration from the 1967 film and was partly inspired by Marlon Brando's character Colonel Kurtz in Apocalypse Now,[13] as well as incorporating Walken's own physical mannerisms.[21] In regards to Louie's changes, Favreau stated, "We created this looming figure that was trying to extract the secret of fire from Mowgli. And also this gave Mowgli the idea that if he had fire, he could have power over Shere Khan, whether it was good or bad. So there was a Lord of the Rings aspect to that; the fire was almost like the ring in that was going to give someone ultimate power, but corrupt them as well as create destruction."[22] The film is dedicated to Garry Shandling, who voiced a porcupine in the film and died of a pulmonary embolism before the film's release.

text: The search for casting Mowgli was extensive, with thousands of children auditioning from the United States, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Canada. Eventually, newcomer Neel Sethi was confirmed for the role, with casting director Rebecca Williams describing him as embodying "the heart, humor, and daring of the character. He's warm and accessible, yet also has an intelligence well beyond his years and impressed us all with his ability to hold his own in any situation."[23] Sethi underwent parkour training in preparation for the role.[7] Pixar Animation Studios assisted in the development of the story, as well as providing suggestions for the film's end credits sequence.[24]

text: Filming and visual effects[edit]

text: Principal photography took place entirely on sound stages at L.A. Center Studios[22] in downtown Los Angeles.[20][25] The animal characters were created entirely in computer animation, with the assistance of footage of real animal movement, the actors recording their lines, and performance capture for reference.[6] The production team underwent a thorough process to realistically convey the animals' speaking, while still making them perceptually believable to the audience. Favreau researched earlier films featuring anthropomorphic animals—including Walt Disney's animated features, such as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and Bambi, as well as modern films such as Babe—and adopted certain techniques from those films into The Jungle Book.[22] Nearly 70 separate species of animals native to India are featured in the film, with several species being portrayed as "150% larger" than their actual counterparts.[22]

text: Jim Henson's Creature Shop was brought in to provide animal puppet figures for Sethi to act against, although none appear in the finished film.[26] The animal puppets were performed by Artie Esposito, Sean Johnson, Allan Trautman, and April Warren.[1] Favreau utilized motion capture with certain actors, expressing a desire to avoid overusing the technology in order to prevent evoking an uncanny valley effect.[6][19]

text: Moving Picture Company (MPC) and Weta Digital created the film's visual effects.[14] MPC developed new software for animating muscular structure in the animals.[22] Around 1,000 remote jungle locations in India were photographed and used as reference in post-production.[27] Weta was responsible for animating the King Louie sequence, with visual effects supervisor Keith Miller adding that, "It was important for Jon to see Christopher Walken in the creature. So we took some of the distinctive Walken facial features—iconic lines, wrinkles and folds—and integrated them into the animated character."[28] Favreau expressed desire in wanting the film's 3D shots to imbue the abilities of the multiplane camera system utilized in Disney's earlier animated films.[24] At Favreau's behest, the idea was extended into the film's version of the Walt Disney Pictures opening production logo, which was recreated as "a hand-painted, cel-animated multi-plane logo" in homage to the animated films of that era, also incorporating the word "Presents" in the same style as the 1967 film's opening credits.[24] The film's ending also features the original physical book that opened the 1967 film.[24]

text: Sound[edit]

text: Director Jon Favreau and composer John Debney sought to recreate the Fantasound experience Walt Disney, himself, had in mind. When mixing the soundtrack in Dolby Atmos, as Favreau said, "we isolated instruments when we could. And in the sound mix, we created a Fantasound mix. If you see the film in Atmos, you will feel that there are instruments that move around the theater."[29] A mention for Fantasound appears in the film's closing credits.

text: Music[edit]

text: The musical score for The Jungle Book was composed and conducted by frequent Favreau collaborator John Debney,[30] mostly drawing from George Bruns' original music. Though Favreau decided not to make the film a musical, nevertheless, he and Debney incorporated several songs from the 1967 animated film.[31] "The Bare Necessities," written by Terry Gilkyson, is performed by Murray and Sethi,[13] and a cover version by Dr. John is featured in the end credits. "I Wan'na Be Like You" and "Trust in Me"—written by the Sherman Brothers—are performed by Walken and Johansson, respectively; Richard M. Sherman wrote revised lyrics for Walken's version of "I Wan'na Be Like You."[13] Johansson's rendition of "Trust in Me" was produced by Mark Ronson and appears in the end credits only.[13]

text: Soundtrack[edit]

text:
The Jungle Book (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)Film score by John DebneyReleased
April 15, 2016Recorded
2015–16Studio
Sony Pictures Studios (score)Esplanade Studios, New Orleans Chalice Recording StudiosMusic Shed Studios, New OrleansGenre
Orchestral, swing jazzLength
74:17Label
Walt DisneyProducer
John Debney
John Debney chronology

The Young Messiah(2016) The Young Messiah2016

The Jungle Book(2016) The Jungle Book2016

Mother's Day(2016) Mother's Day2016

text: Walt Disney Records released the film's soundtrack on April 15, 2016.[32]

text: Track listing[edit]

text: No.TitleWriter(s)Performer(s)Length1."The Bare Necessities"Terry GilkysonDr. John and The Nite Trippers3:362."Trust in Me"Richard M. Sherman, Robert B. ShermanScarlett Johansson2:553."Main Titles[Note 1] / Jungle Run"John Debney & George Bruns 2:274."Wolves / Law of the Jungle"John Debney 2:165."Water Truce"John Debney 3:406."Rains Return"John Debney 1:467."Mowgli's Leaving / Elephant Theme"John Debney 3:288."Shere Khan Attacks / Stampede"John Debney 2:069."Kaa / Baloo to the Rescue"  5:2110."Honeycomb Climb"  3:3111."Man Village"  2:5912."Mowgli and the Pit"  3:2613."Monkeys Kidnap Mowgli"  1:5214."Arriving at King Louie's Temple"  4:3515."Cold Lair Chase"  4:0316."Red Flower"  3:1517."To the River"  3:0518."Shere Khan's War Theme"  2:3719."Shere Khan and the Fire"  4:5220."Elephant Waterfall"  3:2721."Mowgli Wins the Race"  0:4122."Jungle Book Closes"  2:1623."I Wan'na Be Like You"Richard M. Sherman, Robert B. ShermanChristopher Walken3:0224."The Bare Necessities"Terry GilkysonBill Murray, Kermit Ruffins3:01Total length:74:17

text: Note 1. ^ Original "When You Wish Upon a Star" melody composed by Leigh Harline; Walt Disney Pictures logo melody composed by Mark Mancina.

text: Release[edit]

text: The film was originally scheduled for October 9, 2015, but the film's release date was later postponed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures to April 15, 2016.[33][34] The film was released in the Dolby Vision format in Dolby Cinema in the United States,[35] and is the first film to be released in Dolby Vision 3D (in a few select theaters in New York City and Chicago).[36] The Jungle Book held its world premiere at the El Capitan Theatre on April 4, 2016.[37] It was released in 15 countries, a week ahead of its U.S. debut on April 15, in countries like Argentina, Australia, Russia, Malaysia, and most notably in India on April 8.[38] The release date in India was strategic for the film as it coincided with the Indian New Year and was a holiday in most parts of the country.[39] The film had a special Hindi version with famous actors giving their voices to the main characters, including Irrfan Khan as Baloo, Om Puri as Bagheera, Priyanka Chopra as Ka, Nana Patekar as Sher Khan and Shefali Shah as Raksha, for its Indian audiences as the book and the Disney series based on it had been immensely popular in India in 1990s. Disney India also commissioned a contemporary recording of "Jungle Jungle Baat Chali Hai" (originally used for the popular Indian version of Japanese anime series Jungle Book Shōnen Mowgli), overseen by the original Hindi song's composers Vishal Bhardwaj and Gulzar, and released it as part of the film's promotional campaign in India.[40][41]

text: Home media[edit]

text: The film was released digitally on August 23, 2016, and on DVD and Blu-ray on August 30 (August 22 in the UK[42]). A 3D Blu-ray was said to be coming by the end of the year.[43] The film topped the NPD VideoScan overall disc sales chart for two consecutive weeks.[44][45] In the United States, the DVD and Blu-ray releases sold 2,027,137 units by December 2016 and have grossed $46 million as of August 2018.[46]

text: Reception[edit]

text: Box office[edit]

text: The film became a huge financial success and a sleeper hit.[47] It briefly held the record for the biggest remake of all time until the studio's own Beauty and the Beast surpassed it the following year.[48] It grossed $364 million in the United States and Canada and $602.5 million in other countries for a worldwide total of $966.6 million, against a budget of $175 million.[4] Worldwide, the film was released across 28,000 RealD 3D screens[36] and had an IMAX worldwide opening of $20.4 million from 901 IMAX screens, a new record for a PG film.[49] It grossed a total of $39 million in IMAX screens worldwide.[50] On May 13, it became the second film of 2016 (after the studio's own Zootopia) to pass the $800 million mark.[51][52] On June 10, it became the third film of 2016 after Zootopia and Captain America: Civil War to pass the $900 million mark.[53] Deadline Hollywood calculated the net profit of the film to be $258 million, when factoring together all expenses and revenues for the film, making it the sixth-most profitable release of 2016.[54]

text: United States and Canada[edit]

text: Projections for its opening weekend in the United States and Canada were continuously revised upwards, starting from $60 million to as high as $88 million, with female and older male quadrants being the prime draw.[55][36][56][57] The Jungle Book was shown across 4,028 theaters of which 3,100 theaters (75%) were in 3D, including 376 IMAX screens, 463 premium large format screens, and 145 D-Box locations.[55][58][59] It opened Friday, April 15, 2016, on around 9,500 screens across 4,028 theaters, and earned $32.4 million, the fourth-biggest April Friday.[36][60] This includes $4.2 million from Thursday previews, the biggest preview number for a Disney live-adaptation film (tied with Maleficent),[61] an almost unheard-of for a PG title which rarely attracts many ticketbuyers later in the night.[62] In total, it earned $103.3 million in its opening weekend, exceeding expectations by 40% and recorded the biggest PG-rated April opening (breaking Hop's record), the second-biggest Disney live-action adaptation opening (behind Alice in Wonderland), and the second-biggest April opening (behind Furious 7).[36][63][64] It also performed exceptionally well in both 3D and IMAX formats, where they both generated an income of $44 million and $10.4 million of the film's opening-weekend gross, respectively, the later broke the record for the biggest April Disney release IMAX opening.[36][49] Notably, it also became the only second PG-rated release to ever open above $100 million (following Alice in Wonderland) and the third film of 2016 overall to open above $100 million (following Deadpool and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice).[36][65] It earned $130.7 million in its first full week, the second-biggest for a Disney live-action adaptation, behind only Alice in Wonderland's $146.6 million seven-day gross.[66]

text: Buoyed by excellent word of mouth and benefiting from spring break, it fell only by 40% in its second weekend earning $61.5 million, still maintaining the top position and far surpassing newcomer The Huntsman: Winter's War.[67] That puts The Jungle Book in the top fifteen second weekends of all time and in terms of films that opened above $100 million, it scored the fourth-smallest drop behind Shrek 2 (−33%), Spider-Man (−39%), and Star Wars: The Force Awakens (−39%).[68][69] Of those numbers, $5.6 million came from IMAX shows for a two weekend cumulative total of $18.4 million which represents about 10% of its entire North American box office gross.[67] It crossed $200 million on its twelfth day of release[70] and managed to hold the top spot for the third consecutive weekend with $43.7 million from 4,041 theaters (an addition of 13 more theaters), a fall of only 29%, outgrossing the next six pictures combined (including the openings of three newcomers)[71] and recorded the sixth-biggest third weekend of all time.[72] Moreover, the 29% drop is the smallest third-weekend drop (from its second weekend) for a $100 million opener ever.[72] Disney added an additional 103 theaters for the film's fourth weekend of release which propelled its theater count to 4,144 theaters,[73] but nevertheless, it was overtaken by Disney's own Captain America: Civil War after experiencing a 50% decline.[74][75] It passed $300 million on its thirtieth day of release, on May 14, as it continued to witness marginal declines in the wake of several new releases weekend after weekend.[76] It made 3.53 times its opening weekend numbers, which is one of the biggest of all time for a film opening above $100 million. It became one of the few surprise hits and one of the highest-grossing films of the year, alongside Finding Dory, The Secret Life of Pets, and Zootopia, centered around talking animals to dominate the year-end chart.[47]

text: Other countries[edit]

text: The film was released in approximately 70 countries.[77] Outside the US and Canada, it opened across 15 markets and 69 IMAX screens a week ahead of its US debut, and faced notable competition from newcomer The Huntsman: Winter's War and holdover Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, the latter of which was entering its third weekend. The reason behind the divided release pattern was because Disney wanted to get some space before Captain America: Civil War releases in early May, as well as availing school holidays and avoiding local competitors.[78] It eventually grossed $31.7 million, debuting at first place in all markets and second overall at the international box office, behind Dawn of Justice, which was playing across 67 markets.[78] In its second weekend, it expanded to an additional 49 countries (88% of its total marketplace) and grossed $138.6 million from 64 countries, easily topping the international box office, a bulk of it came from China.[79] Approximately 63% or $85 million of that came from 3D screenings, with the largest 3D opening haul represented by China (98%), Germany (83%), Brazil (73%), Russia (60%), Mexico (47%), and the UK (39%).[79] $10 million alone came from 525 IMAX screens, a record for a PG and April release.[49] It further continued to hold the top spot in its third weekend after adding another $98.9 million from 53 territories, falling only by a marginal 32%. IMAX generated another $6.1 million from 484 IMAX theaters for a three-weekend total of $20.6 million.[50] After three straight No. 1 runs, it was finally dethroned by the studio's Captain America: Civil War in its fourth weekend.[80]

text: In India, it scored the second-biggest opening day for a Hollywood film, earning $1.51 million (behind Avengers: Age of Ultron) from around 1,500 screens[81] and went on to score the second-biggest Hollywood opening weekend of all time, with $8.4 million from 1,600 screens, behind only Furious 7 in terms of local as well as U.S. currency,[82][83] performing better than expected and its initial $5–6 million opening projection.[81] Its opening weekend in India alone surpassed the entire lifetime total of Disney's other live-fantasy adaptations—Cinderella, Maleficent, Oz the Great and Powerful, and Alice in Wonderland—in the country.[78] It then went on to score the biggest opening and single week for a Hollywood film with $15.1 million.[77][84] In its second weekend, it dropped just by a mere 40% to $4.97 million.[85] In just ten days, it became the fourth-highest-grossing Hollywood film there with $21.2 million.[63] On Wednesday, April 19—its twelfth day of release—it surpassed Furious 7 to become the highest-grossing Hollywood/foreign release of all time there.[86][87] By the end of its theatrical run, the film made an estimated $38.8 million with half of its revenue—58%—coming from local dubbed versions, compared to Avengers: Age of Ultron, which saw 45% of its revenue from dubbed versions.[88]

text: In China, where the film was locally known as Fantasy Forest, expectations were high, with projections going as high $154–200 million or more.[89][90][91][92] Ultimately, it was unable to hit these marks.[76] Before the release of the film in the state, Disney had a very successful run at the box office with Zootopia the previous month, in which anthropomorphic animals were the central figure.[93] Forbes noted that The Jungle Book was precisely the sort of film that Chinese audiences love with its 3D visuals, heartwarming story, and talking animal cast.[90] It earned around $12 million on its opening day, including $300,000 worth of previews from 65,000 screenings.[90] Buoyed by good word of mouth and positive reception (albeit mostly from audiences with polarized reception from Chinese critics),[94] it rose 72% on its second day to $20 million.[92] Through its opening weekend it grossed $48.5 million, including $5.1 million from 279 IMAX screens, a new record for April release.[63][95] Its opening marked the biggest Walt Disney Pictures film opening ever,[96] the second-biggest for a family film (behind Kung Fu Panda 3), the second-biggest April debut (behind Furious 7), and the fourth-biggest Disney opening (behind Avengers: Age of Ultron, Iron Man 3, and Star Wars: The Force Awakens).[97] It topped the daily box office through the whole opening week and went on to remain at the top of the box office for a second weekend, after dropping by a mere 20% to $29.8 million, despite facing some competitions.[98] It ended its run there with a total of $150.1 million after thirty days of playing in theaters, adding $1.2 million on its last day. Albeit falling just below expectations, it nevertheless emerged as a huge financial success and becoming the fourth-biggest Disney release there.[76][99]

text: In the United Kingdom and Ireland, it had an opening weekend total of £9.9 million ($14.1 million) from 594 theaters[100] and in France with $8.1 million.[79] Elsewhere, the highest openings were recorded in Russia and the CIS ($7.4 million), Germany ($5.1 million), Spain ($3.9 million), Australia ($2.8 million), Argentina ($2.3 million), and in Malaysia, where it scored the biggest opening weekend for a live-action Disney film with $2.3 million.[78][79] In the UK, it became the first film of 2016 to earn over £5 million in three straight weekends and the first film since Jurassic World, Spectre, and Star Wars: The Force Awakens (all 2015 films) to achieve such an accomplishment,[101] and the first film of 2016 to earn above £40 million ($58 million).[102] In South Korea, it faced competition with Warcraft, but ended up debuting atop the charts with $6.2 million.[103] It has so far grossed a total of $18 million there.[104]

text: It opened in Japan on August 11, alongside the superhero film X-Men: Apocalypse[96][105] and delivered a four-day opening of $6.2 million from 676 screens ($3 million in two days), debuting at second place behind The Secret Life of Pets. Although the opening figure was considered mediocre, Deadline Hollywood noted that Japan is a market that can see big multiples.[106][107] It fell just 30% in its second weekend earning $2.1 million for an eleven-day total of $13.7 million.[108][109]

text: In total earnings, its biggest markets outside of the US and Canada were China ($150.1 million), the United Kingdom ($66.2 million) and India ($38.8 million).[99] It was the highest-grossing film of 2016 in Europe with a total of $209 million,[110] the United Kingdom and Ireland,[111] and in India (although it was later surpassed by Sultan, in terms of Hollywood/imported films, it is still the biggest).[112]

text: Critical response[edit]

text: The film received praise for its visual effects, vocal performances, direction, musical score, and its faithfulness to the animated film.[117][118][119] On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 95% based on 296 reviews, with an average rating of 7.7/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "As lovely to behold as it is engrossing to watch, The Jungle Book is the rare remake that actually improves upon its predecessors—all while setting a new standard for CGI."[120] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 77 out of 100, based on 49 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews."[121] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale, while PostTrak reported filmgoers gave it an overall positive score of 92%. Ninety-seven percent of the audience gave the film an A or a B, and it got A's from both the under- and over-25 crowd and A+ among those under 18 years of age and also for the over-50 audience.[36]

text: Todd McCarthy of The Hollywood Reporter wrote, "Exceptionally beautiful to behold and bolstered by a stellar vocal cast, this umpteenth film rendition of Rudyard Kipling's tales of young Mowgli's adventures amongst the creatures of the Indian jungle proves entirely engaging, even if it's ultimately lacking in subtext and thematic heft."[122] Andrew Barker of Variety felt that this version "can't rival the woolly looseness of Disney's 1967 animated classic, of course, but it succeeds on its own so well that such comparisons are barely necessary."[123] Robbie Collin of The Telegraph gave the film four stars out of five, and deemed it "a sincere and full-hearted adaptation that returns to Kipling for fresh inspiration."[124] Alonso Duralde of The Wrap says "This 'Book' might lack the post-vaudeville razzamatazz of its predecessor, but director Jon Favreau and a team of effects wizards plunge us into one of the big screen's most engrossing artificial worlds since Avatar."[125] Peter Bradshaw, writing for The Guardian, gave the film four out of five stars and felt that the film had a touch of Apocalypto in it, finding the plot elements to be similar to those in The Lion King. He wrote that the film was "spectacular, exciting, funny and fun" and that it "handsomely revives the spirit of Disney's original film."[126] Pete Hammond of Deadline Hollywood wrote that the film had laughs, excitement, an exceptional voice cast and, most importantly, a lot of heart, calling it a cinematic achievement like no other. He particularly praised Murray's performance and the visual effects, deeming it "simply astonishing."[127] Chris Nashawaty of Entertainment Weekly graded the film an "A–," calling it one of the biggest surprises of 2016. He, however, felt the two songs were rather unnecessary and distracting, and believed the film to be a little too frightening for children.[128]

text: Richard Roeper of Chicago Sun-Times awarded the film three-and-a-half stars, pointing out the CGI as the apex achievement of the film. He labelled it "a beautifully rendered, visually arresting take on Rudyard Kipling's oft-filmed tales" but found the musical numbers to be trivial, saying that without the musical numbers, the film might have been a more exhilarating streamlined adventure.[129] Los Angeles Times' Kenneth Turan remarked that "The Jungle Book is the kind of family film calculated to make even those without families wish they had one to take along."[130] Peter Travers of Rolling Stone awarded the film three-and-a-half stars out of four, labeling it scary and thrilling, yet unique and unforgettable, and adding that it "fills us with something rare in movies today—a sense of wonder."[131] The Village Voice's Bilge Ebiri hailed the film as fast and light and that it "manages to be just scary enough to make us feel the danger of solitude in the middle of a massive jungle, but never indulgent or gratuitous."[132] The New York Times' Manohla Dargis was less enthusiastic.[133] Cath Clarke of Time Out compared Elba's character of Shere Khan to Scar from The Lion King, calling him "baddie of the year."[134] Matt Zoller Seitz of RogerEbert.com also had high praise for Elba's portrayal of Shere Khan stating: "His loping menace is envisioned so powerfully that he'd be scary no matter what, but the character becomes a great villain through imaginative empathy. We understand and appreciate his point-of-view, even though carrying it out would mean the death of Mowgli."[115]

text: The film's visual effects and 3D photography were compared to those of Avatar, Gravity, Hugo, and Life of Pi.[117][125][135] Sarah Ward of Screen International wrote that the level of detail on display in the film "is likely to evoke the same jaw-dropping reaction as James Cameron's box office topper."[136] Entertainment Weekly called it "one of the few 3D movies that actually benefits from being in 3D."[128] The film also had a positive reception from Indian contemporary critics and publications,[137] such as The Times of India,[138] The Hindu,[139] India Today,[140] The Indian Express,[141] and The Economic Times.[142]

text: The film also had its share of negative reviews with most reviewers criticizing the inconsistent tone of the film and the director's indecision to stick to one vision. Sam C. Mac of Slant Magazine wrote, "Jon Favreau draws heavily on his film's animated predecessor for plot, characterizations, songs, and set pieces, but doesn't know how to fit these familiar elements into his own coherent vision".[143] Josh Spiegel of Movie Mezzanine also echoed these feelings, saying that the film "stumbles because the people involved aren't willing to fully commit to either making a near-shot-for-shot remake or going in a completely different direction".[144] Rene Rodriguez of the Miami Herald felt that the movie was soulless, writing that "The better these talking beasts look, the more the film resembles a gorgeous screen saver. You admire The Jungle Book, but you can't lose yourself in it".[145]

text: Accolades[edit]

text: Sequel[edit]

text: Following the film's early financial and critical success, the studio has begun working on a sequel. Jon Favreau is reported to return as director and Neel Sethi is reported to reprise his role as Mowgli, while screenwriter Justin Marks is also in negotiations to return.[146] It was announced on April 25, 2016, that Favreau and Marks will return to direct and write, and the sequel could potentially have a release sometime in 2019 and will be shot back-to-back with a remake of The Lion King.[147][148][149] However, it was reported in March 2017 that the sequel was put on hold in order for Favreau to instead focus mainly on The Lion King.[150]


document_title: HMS Belfast (C35)

question_text: where do the guns on hms belfast point

question_tokens: where do the guns on hms belfast point

root

text: HMS Belfast (C35)

text: Design[edit]

text: Belfast is a cruiser of the third Town class. The Town class had originated in 1933 as the Admiralty's response to the Imperial Japanese Navy's Mogami-class cruiser, an 11,200-ton cruiser mounting fifteen 6-inch (152 mm) guns with a top speed exceeding 35 knots (65 km/h; 40 mph). The Admiralty's requirement called for a 9,000-ton cruiser, sufficiently armoured to withstand a direct hit from an 8-inch (203 mm) shell, capable of 32 knots (59 km/h) and mounting twelve 6-inch guns. Seaplanes carried aboard would enable shipping lanes to be patrolled over a wide area, and the class was also to be capable of its own anti-aircraft defence.[9] Under the Director of Naval Construction the new design evolved during 1933.[10] The lead ship of the new class, the 9,100-ton HMS Southampton, and her sister HMS Newcastle, were ordered under the 1933 estimates.[11] Three more cruisers were built to this design, with a further three ships built to a slightly larger 9,400-ton design in 1935–36.[11] By 1935, however, the Admiralty was keen to improve the firepower of these cruisers to match the firepower of the Japanese Mogami and American Brooklyn-class cruisers; both were armed with fifteen 6-inch guns.[10] The Admiralty rejected a design featuring five triple turrets as impractical, while an alternative design fitting four quadruple turrets was rejected as an effective quadruple turret could not be developed.[12] In May 1936 the Admiralty decided to fit triple turrets, whose improved design would permit an increase in deck armour.[13] This modified design became the 10,000-ton Edinburgh subclass, named after Belfast's sister ship HMS Edinburgh.[11] Belfast was ordered from Harland and Wolff on 21 September 1936,[14] and her keel laid on 10 December 1936.[14] Her expected cost was £2,141,514; of which the guns cost £75,000 and the aircraft (two Supermarine Walruses) £66,500.[15] She was launched on Saint Patrick's Day, 17 March 1938, by Anne Chamberlain, the wife of Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain.[14] The launch was filmed by Pathe News.[16] From March to August 1939, Belfast was fitted out and underwent sea trials.[2][14]

tag: p

text: When completed, Belfast had an overall length of 613 feet 6 inches (187.0 m), a beam of 63 feet 4 inches (19.3 m) and a draught of 17 feet 3 inches (5.3 m). Her standard displacement during her sea trials was 10,420 long tons (10,590 t).[4] She was propelled by four three-drum oil-fired Admiralty water-tube boilers, turning Parsons geared steam turbines, driving four propeller shafts.[2] She was capable of 32.5 knots (60.2 km/h; 37.4 mph) and carried 2,400 long tons (2,400 t) of fuel oil.[4] This gave her a maximum range of 8,664 nautical miles (16,046 km; 9,970 mi) at 13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph).[5]

text: Belfast's main armament comprised twelve Mk XXIII 6-inch guns in four triple turrets. With a rate of fire of up to eight rounds per gun per minute, her main battery was capable of a total maximum rate of fire of 96 rounds per minute.[5] Her secondary armament comprised twelve 4-inch guns in six twin mounts. Her initial close-range anti-aircraft armament was sixteen 2-pounder "pom-pom" guns in two eight-barrel mountings, and two quadruple Vickers .50 machine guns. She also mounted six Mk IV 21-inch torpedo tubes in two triple mounts, and fifteen Mk VII depth charges.[2][4]

text: Belfast was protected by a 4.5-inch (114 mm) main armour belt, with deck armour of 3 inches (76 mm) over her magazines, and 2 inches (51 mm) over her machinery spaces.[4] Her six-inch turrets were protected by up to 4 inches (102 mm) of armour.[5]

text: Belfast's aviation capability was provided by two catapult-launched Supermarine Walrus amphibious biplanes. These could be launched from a D1H catapult mounted aft of the forward superstructure, and recovered from the water by two cranes mounted on either side of the forward funnel. The aircraft, operated by the Fleet Air Arm's HMS Belfast Flight of 700 Naval Air Squadron, were stowed in two hangars in the forward superstructure.[3]

text: Second World War[edit]

text: 1939–1942: Commissioning, prize capture, mining, and repairs[edit]

text: Belfast sailed for Portsmouth on 3 August 1939, and was commissioned on 5 August 1939, less than a month before the outbreak of the Second World War. Her first captain was Captain G A Scott with a crew of 761, and her first assignment was to the Home Fleet's 2nd Cruiser Squadron. On 14 August, Belfast took part in her first exercise, Operation Hipper, in which she played the role of a German commerce raider attempting to escape into the Atlantic. By navigating the hazardous Pentland Firth, Belfast successfully evaded the Home Fleet.[17]

text: On 31 August 1939 Belfast was transferred to the 18th Cruiser Squadron. Based at Scapa Flow in the Orkney islands, 18th Cruiser Squadron was part of the British effort to impose a naval blockade on Germany. Germany invaded Poland the following day, and Britain and France declared war on 3 September. At 11:40 that morning, Belfast received the message ‘Commence hostilities at once against Germany’.[18] On 8 September Belfast put to sea from Scapa Flow with the battlecruisers Hood, Renown, her sister ship Edinburgh and four destroyers, on a patrol intended to intercept German ships returning from Norway. In particular, they were to search for the Norddeutscher Lloyd liner Europa. No enemy vessels were found.[18] On 25 September, Belfast took part in a fleet operation to recover the submarine Spearfish, during which the ship was attacked by German aircraft, but suffered no damage.[19] On 1 October 1939 Belfast left Scapa Flow for a patrol in the North Sea. On 5 October Belfast intercepted and boarded a neutral Norwegian factory ship that was sailing in company with six whaling ships. [20] On 8 October the ship sighted the Swedish merchant ship C. P. Lilljevach but, in poor weather, did not intercept or board her. The following day she boarded Tai Yin, a Norwegian ship. Tai Yin had been listed by the Admiralty as suspicious, so a prize crew from Belfast sailed her to Kirkwall for investigation.[21] On 9 October Belfast intercepted a German liner, the 13,615-ton Cap Norte, 50 miles (80 km) north-west of the Faroe Islands. Disguised as a neutral Swedish vessel, SS Ancona, Cap Norte was attempting to return to Germany from Brazil; her passengers included German reservists.[17] Under the Admiralty's prize rules, Belfast's crew later received prize money.[22] On 12 October Belfast boarded the Swedish ship Uddeholm, which was also sailed to Kirkwall by a prize crew.[23] Returning to harbour, on the night of 13–14 October, Belfast was among the few ships anchored in Scapa Flow, following intelligence reports of an expected air raid. That night, the battleship Royal Oak was torpedoed by German submarine U-47, which had infiltrated the anchorage. On the morning following the sinking, Belfast left for Loch Ewe.[24]

text: On 10 November Belfast was taken off the northern patrol and reassigned to the 2nd Cruiser Squadron. This squadron was to form an independent striking force based at Rosyth. On 21 November, Belfast was to take part in the force's first sortie, a gunnery exercise. At 10:58 am she struck a magnetic mine while leaving the Firth of Forth. The mine broke Belfast's keel, and wrecked one of her engine and boiler rooms.[25] Twenty officers and men required hospital treatment for injuries caused by the explosion, and a further 26 suffered minor injuries. One man, Painter 2nd Class Henry Stanton, was hospitalised but later died of a head injury, having been thrown against the deckhead by the blast.[26] The tugboat Krooman, towing gunnery targets for the exercise, released her targets and instead towed Belfast to Rosyth for initial repairs.[25]

text: Initial assessments of Belfast's damage showed that, while the mine had done little direct damage to the outer hull, causing only a small hole directly below one of the boiler rooms, the shock of the explosion had caused severe warping, breaking machinery, deforming the decks and causing the keel to hog (bend upwards) by three inches. On 4 January 1940 Belfast was decommissioned to Care and Maintenance status, becoming the responsibility of Rosyth Dockyard, and her crew dispersed to other vessels. By 28 June she had been repaired sufficiently to sail to Devonport, arriving on 30 June under the command of Lt Cdr H W Parkinson.[27]

text: During her repairs, work was carried out to straighten, reconstruct and strengthen her hull. Her armour belt was also extended and thickened. Her armament was updated with newer 2-pounder pom-pom mountings, and her anti-aircraft armament improved with eighteen 20 mm Oerlikon guns in five twin and eight single mountings, replacing two quadruple 0.5-inch Vickers guns. Belfast also received new fire control radars for her main, secondary and anti-aircraft guns. Her November 1942 radar fit included one Type 284 set and four Type 283 sets to direct the main armament, three Type 285 sets for the secondary guns, and two Type 285 sets for the 2-pounder anti-aircraft guns. She also received a Type 273 general surface warning radar, Type 251 and 252 sets for identification friend or foe (IFF) purposes, and a Type 281 and Type 242 for air warning. Her 1942 electronics suite also included a Type 270 echosounder.[6] Due to her increased topweight, a bulge was introduced into her hull amidships to improve stability and provide extra longitudinal strength. Her beam had increased to 69 ft (21 m) and her draught to 19 ft (5.8 m) forward and 20 ft 2 in (6.15 m) aft.[6] Her displacement had risen to 11,550 tons.

text: 1942–1943: Recommissioning, Arctic convoys and Battle of North Cape[edit]

text: Belfast was recommissioned at Devonport on 3 November 1942, under the command of Captain Frederick Parham.[6][nb 1] On her return to the Home Fleet Belfast was made flagship of the 10th Cruiser Squadron, flying the flag of Rear-Admiral Robert Burnett, who had previously commanded the Home Fleet's destroyer flotillas.[29] The squadron was responsible for the hazardous task of escorting Arctic convoys to the Soviet Union, operating from Scapa Flow and bases in Iceland. Her radar suite reduced Belfast's need for aerial surveillance, and her aircraft were disembarked in June 1943.[30] Belfast spent 1943 engaged on convoy escort and blockade patrol duties, and on 5–6 October of the same year, formed part of the covering force during Operation Leader, an airstrike against German shipping in the waters of northern Norway near Bodø by the aircraft carrier USS Ranger.[31]

text: On 26 December 1943, Belfast participated in the Battle of North Cape. This battle, which occurred during the Arctic night, involved two strong Royal Navy formations; the first, Force One, comprised the cruisers Norfolk, Sheffield and Belfast (the 10th Cruiser Squadron) with three destroyers, and the second, Force Two, comprised the battleship Duke of York and the cruiser Jamaica with four destroyers. On 25 December 1943, Christmas Day, Nazi Germany's Scharnhorst-class battleship Scharnhorst left port in northern Norway to attack Convoy JW55B, which was bound for the Soviet Union. The next day Force One encountered Scharnhorst, prevented her from attacking the convoy, and forced her to turn for home after being damaged by the British cruisers. As Scharnhorst did so, she was intercepted by Force Two and sunk by the combined formations. Belfast played an important role in the battle; as flagship of the 10th Cruiser Squadron, she was among the first to encounter Scharnhorst, and coordinated the squadron's defence of the convoy. After Scharnhorst turned away from the convoy, Admiral Burnett in Belfast shadowed her by radar from outside visual range, enabling her interception by Duke of York.[32]

text: 1944: Tirpitz and D-Day[edit]

text: After North Cape, Belfast refuelled at Kola Inlet before sailing for the United Kingdom, arriving at Scapa to replenish her fuel, ammunition and stores on New Year's Day 1944. Belfast sailed to Rosyth on 10 January, where her crew received a period of leave. February 1944 saw Belfast resume her Arctic convoy duties, and on 30 March 1944 Belfast sailed with the covering force of Operation Tungsten, a large carrier-launched Fleet Air Arm airstrike against the German battleship Tirpitz.[33] Moored in Altafjord in northern Norway, Tirpitz was the German navy's last surviving capital ship.[34] Forty-two Fairey Barracuda dive-bombers from HMS Victorious and HMS Furious made up the strike force; escorted by eighty fighters. Launched on 3 April, the bombers scored fourteen hits, immobilising Tirpitz for two months, with one Barracuda shot down.[33][34] Belfast underwent minor repairs at Rosyth from 23 April to 8 May, while her crew received a period of leave. On 8 May Belfast returned to Scapa Flow and carried the King during his pre-invasion visit to the Home Fleet.[35]

text: For the invasion of Normandy Belfast was made headquarters ship of Bombardment Force E flying the flag of Rear-Admiral Frederick Dalrymple-Hamilton, and was to support landings by British and Canadian forces in the Gold and Juno Beach sectors. On 2 June Belfast left the River Clyde for her bombardment areas. That morning Prime Minister Winston Churchill had announced his intention to go to sea with the fleet and witness the invasion from HMS Belfast. This was opposed by the Supreme Allied Commander, General Dwight D. Eisenhower, and the First Sea Lord, Sir Andrew Cunningham. An intervention by the King eventually prevented Churchill from going.[35]

text: The invasion was to begin on 5 June but bad weather forced a 24-hour delay. At 5:30 am on 6 June, Belfast opened fire on a German artillery battery at Ver-sur-Mer, suppressing the guns until the site was overrun by British infantry of 7th Battalion, Green Howards. On 12 June Belfast supported Canadian troops moving inland from Juno Beach and returned to Portsmouth on 16 June to replenish her ammunition. She returned two days later for further bombardments. On the night of 6 July Belfast was threatened at anchor by German motor torpedo boats ("E-boats"). She evaded them by weighing anchor and moving to the concealment of a smoke screen.[36] Belfast fired her last round in anger in European waters on 8 July, in company with the monitor HMS Roberts and the battleship HMS Rodney, as part of Operation Charnwood.[nb 2] On 10 July she sailed for Scapa, the fighting in France having moved inland beyond the range of her guns.[36][38] During her five weeks off Normandy, Belfast had fired 1,996 rounds from her six-inch guns.[39]

text: 1945: Service in the Far East[edit]

text: On 29 July 1944, Captain Parham handed over command of HMS Belfast to Captain R M Dick, and until April 1945 Belfast underwent a refit to prepare for service against Japan in the Far East which improved her accommodation for tropical conditions, and updated her anti-aircraft armament and fire control in order to counter expected kamikaze attacks by Japanese aircraft. By May 1945, Belfast mounted thirty-six 2-pounder guns in two eight-gun mounts, four quadruple mounts, and four single mounts. She also mounted fourteen 20 mm Oerlikons.[40] Her two aftmost 4-inch mountings were removed, and the remainder fitted with Remote Power Control. Her empty hangars were converted to crew accommodation, and her aircraft catapult was removed.[7]

text: Her radar fit now included a Type 277 radar set to replace her Type 273 for surface warning. Her Type 281 air warning set was replaced by a single-antenna Type 281B set, while a Type 293Q was fitted for close-range height-finding and surface warning. A Type 274 set was fitted for main armament fire direction.[41][30] On 17 June 1945, with the war in Europe at an end, Belfast sailed for the Far East via Gibraltar, Malta, Alexandria, Port Said, Aden, Colombo and Sydney. By the time she arrived in Sydney on 7 August Belfast had been made flagship of the 2nd Cruiser Squadron of the British Pacific Fleet. While in Sydney Belfast underwent another short refit, supplementing her close-range armament with five 40 mm Bofors guns. Belfast had been expected to join in Operation Downfall, but this was forestalled by the Japanese surrender on 15 August 1945.[7]

text: Post-war service 1945–50[edit]

text: With the end of the war, Belfast remained in the Far East, conducting a number of cruises to ports in Japan, China and Malaya and sailing for Portsmouth on 20 August 1947. There she paid off into reserve, and underwent a refit during which her turbines were opened for maintenance. She also received two more single Bofors guns, in place of two of her single 2-pounder mountings.[40] She was recommissioned on 22 September 1948 and before returning to the Far East visited her home city of Belfast arriving on 20 October. The following day, 21 October 1948, the ship's company marked Trafalgar Day with a march through the city. The next day Belfast took charge of a silver ship's bell, a gift of the people of Belfast.[42] She sailed for Hong Kong on 23 October to join the Royal Navy's Far East Station, arriving in late December. By 1949, the political situation in China was precarious, with the Chinese Civil War moving towards its conclusion. As flagship of the 5th Cruiser Squadron, Belfast was the Far Eastern Station's headquarters ship during the April 1949 Amethyst Incident, in which a British sloop, HMS Amethyst, was trapped in the Yangtze River by the communist People's Liberation Army. Belfast remained in Hong Kong during 1949, sailing for Singapore on 18 January 1950. There she underwent a minor refit between January to March 1950 and in June she joined the Far East Fleet's summer cruise.[43] On 25 June 1950, while Belfast was visiting Hakodate in Japan, North Korean forces crossed the 38th Parallel, starting the Korean War.[44]

text: Korean War 1950–52[edit]

text: With the outbreak of the Korean War, Belfast became part of the United Nations naval forces. Originally part of the US Navy's Task Force 77, Belfast was detached in order to operate independently on 5 July 1950. During July and early August 1950, Belfast undertook coastal patrols and was based at Sasebo in Japan's Nagasaki Prefecture. From 19 July Belfast supported troops fighting around Yongdok, accompanied by USS Juneau. That day Belfast fired an accurate 350-round bombardment from her 6-inch guns, and was praised by an American admiral as a "straight-shooting ship".[nb 3][45] On 6 August she sailed for the UK for a short (but needed) refit, after which she again set sail for the far east and arrived back at Sasebo on 31 January 1951.[45]

text: During 1951 Belfast mounted a number of coastal patrols and bombarded a variety of targets. On 1 June she arrived at Singapore for refitting, arriving back on patrol on 31 August. In September 1951 Belfast provided anti-aircraft cover for a salvage operation to recover a crashed enemy MiG-15 jet fighter. She conducted further bombardments and patrols before receiving a month's leave from operations, returning to action on 23 December.[46]

text: In 1952 Belfast continued her coastal patrol duties. On 29 July 1952 Belfast was hit by enemy fire while engaging an artillery battery on Wolsa-ri island. A 75 mm shell struck a forward compartment, killing a British sailor of Chinese origin in his hammock and wounding four other Chinese ratings. This was the only time Belfast was hit by enemy fire during her Korean service. On 27 September 1952 Belfast was relieved by two other Town-class cruisers, HMS Birmingham and HMS Newcastle, and sailed back to the UK. She had steamed over 80,000 miles (130,000 km) in the combat zone and fired more than 8,000 rounds from her 6-inch guns during the Korean War. She paid off in Chatham on 4 November 1952 and entered reserve at Devonport on 1 December.[47]

text: Modernisation and final commissions 1955–1963[edit]

text: In reserve, Belfast's future was uncertain: post-war defence cuts made manpower-intensive cruisers excessively costly to operate, and it was not until March 1955 that the decision was taken to modernise Belfast. Work began on 6 January 1956. Although described as only an extended refit, the cost was substantial for this large middle aged cruiser, 5.5 million pounds [48] Changes included: providing the new twin MK 5 40 mm and the twin 4-inch mount with individual MRS8 directors; the 4-inch guns training and elevation speed was increased to 20 degrees a second; and protecting key parts of the ship against nuclear, biological or chemical attack. This last consideration meant significantly enlarging and enclosing her bridge, creating a two-tiered, five-sided superstructure which radically altered her appearance. The most significant change was better accommodations for a smaller crew more fitting of post-war needs, her tripod masts replaced with lattice masts, and timber decking replaced with steel everywhere except the quarterdeck. The overall effect was to create a cruiser significantly more habitable but different internally and to a degree in external appearance from wartime cruisers but only marginally superior in capability from its late-war fit. Belfast recommissioned at Devonport on 12 May 1959.[49] Her close-range armament was standardised to six twin Bofors guns, and her close-range fire direction similarly standardised to eight close-range blind fire directors fitted with Type 262 radar.[30] Her 1959 radar fit also included Type 274, retained for main armament direction, Type 277Q and 293Q for height-finding and surface warning, Type 960M for air warning, and 974 for surface warning.[50] In order to save weight, her torpedo armament was removed.[50]

text: Belfast arrived in Singapore on 16 December 1959, and spent most of 1960 at sea on exercise, calling at ports in Hong Kong, Borneo, India, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), Australia, the Philippines and Japan. On 31 January 1961, Belfast recommissioned, under the command of Captain Morgan Morgan-Giles. On her final foreign commission Belfast joined a number of exercises in the Far East, and in December 1961 she provided the British guard of honour at Tanganyika's independence ceremony in Dar-es-Salaam.[51]

text: The ship left Singapore on 26 March 1962 for the UK, sailing east via Hong Kong, Guam and Pearl Harbor, San Francisco, Seattle, British Columbia, Panama and Trinidad. She arrived at Portsmouth on 19 June 1962.

text: Recommissioned in July, she made a final visit to Belfast from 23–29 November, before paying off into reserve on 25 February 1963. In July 1963 Belfast was recommissioned for the last time, with a crew of the Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) and a number of Sea Cadets flying the flag of the Admiral Commanding Reserves, Rear Admiral Hugh Martell. Belfast sailed for Gibraltar in company with sixteen RNR minesweepers for a two-week exercise in the Mediterranean on 10 August.[52] Martell's obituarist considered this commission a well-judged contrivance which 'did much to restore the confidence and image of the new RNR' which had undergone an acrimonious amalgamation with the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve in 1958.[53]

text: Reserve, decommissioning, and preservation efforts 1963–1971[edit]

text: Belfast returned to Devonport on 24 August 1963 and underwent a short refit to prepare her for paying off into reserve, which occurred in December 1963. In January 1966 parts of the ship and power systems were reactivated and from May 1966 to 1970 she served as an accommodation ship (taking over those duties from Sheffield), moored in Fareham Creek, for the Reserve Division at Portsmouth.[52] While Belfast lay at Fareham Creek the Imperial War Museum, Britain's national museum of twentieth-century conflict, became interested in preserving a 6-inch turret. The turret would represent a number of classes of cruiser (then disappearing from service) and would complement the museum's pair of British 15-inch naval guns.[37][52] On 14 April 1967 museum staff visited Gambia, a Crown Colony-class cruiser also moored in Fareham Creek at the time. Following the visit the possibility was raised[by whom?] of preserving an entire ship. Gambia had already severely deteriorated, so attention turned to the possibility of saving Belfast. The Imperial War Museum, the National Maritime Museum and the Ministry of Defence established a joint committee, which reported in June 1968 that the scheme was practical and economic. However, in early 1971 the government's Paymaster General decided against preservation.[52] On 4 May 1971 Belfast was "reduced to disposal" to await scrapping.[52]

text: HMS Belfast Trust 1971–1977[edit]

text:
HMS Belfast
(Museum ship)

HMS Belfast berthed in the Pool of London; Tower Bridge can be seen behind.

Established
1971

Location
The Queen's Walk, London, SE1 2JH

Visitors
346,331 (2014)[8]

Director
Phil Reed[54]

Public transit access
London Bridge station
Tower Hill station

Website
iwm.org.uk/visits/hms-belfast

Imperial War Museums

Churchill War Rooms
HMS Belfast
IWM Duxford
IWM London
IWM North

tag: table

text: Following the government's refusal, a private trust was formed to campaign for the ship's preservation. The HMS Belfast Trust was established; its chairman was Rear-Admiral Sir Morgan Morgan-Giles, captain of Belfast from January 1961 to July 1962.[52] As Member of Parliament (MP) for Winchester, Morgan-Giles addressed the House of Commons on 8 March 1971. He described Belfast as being in "a really wonderful state of preservation" and that saving her for the nation represented a "case of grasping the last opportunity".[55] Among the MPs who spoke in support of Morgan-Giles was Gordon Bagier, MP for Sunderland South, who served as a Royal Marine gunner aboard Belfast and was present at both the sinking of Scharnhorst and the Normandy landings. Speaking for the government, the Under-secretary for the Navy, Peter Michael Kirk, said that Belfast was "one of the most historic ships which the Navy has had in the last 20 years",[55] but that he could not prevent the stripping of the ship's removable equipment, as this was already too far advanced to be halted. He did, however, agree to postpone any decision on the scrapping of Belfast to allow the Trust to put together a formal proposal.[55]

text: Following the Trust's efforts, the government agreed to hand over Belfast to the Trustees in July 1971, with Vice Admiral Sir Donald Gibson as her first director. At a press conference in August the Trust announced "Operation Seahorse",[nb 4] the plan to bring Belfast to London. She was towed from Portsmouth to London via Tilbury, where she was fitted out as a museum.[56] She was towed to her final resting place above Tower Bridge on October 15, 1971 and settled in a huge hole that had been dredged in the river bed; then she was attached to two dolphins which guide her during the rise and falll of the tide.[57]

text: She was opened to the public on Trafalgar Day, 21 October 1971. The date was significant, as Belfast was the first naval vessel to be saved for the nation since HMS Victory, Lord Nelson's flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar.[58] Though no longer part of the Royal Navy, HMS Belfast was granted a special dispensation to allow her to continue to fly the White Ensign.[59]

text: Now a museum, the ship's opening was well received: in 1972 the HMS Belfast Trust won the British Tourist Authority's "Come to Britain" trophy.[60] Support for the ship's restoration was received from individuals, from the Royal Navy, and from commercial businesses; in 1973, for example, the Worshipful Company of Bakers provided dummy bread for display in the ship's NAAFI and bakery.[60] By 1974, areas including the Admiral's bridge and forward boiler and engine rooms had been restored and fitted out. That year also saw the refurbishment of the ship's Operations Room by a team from HMS Vernon, and the return of Belfast's six twin Bofors mounts, along with their fire directors.[60] By December 1975 Belfast had received 1,500,000 visitors.[60] In 1976 Belfast was reaffiliated with the successors to the British Army's Royal Ulster Rifles, the Royal Irish Rangers,[nb 5][60] and in the same year the Royal Naval Amateur Radio Society restored the ship's Bridge Wireless Office to working order.[61][nb 6]

text: Imperial War Museum 1978–present[edit]

text: By 1977, the financial position of the HMS Belfast Trust had become marginal, and the Imperial War Museum sought permission to merge the Trust into the museum. On 19 January 1978 the Secretary of State for Education and Science, Shirley Williams, accepted the proposal stating that HMS Belfast "is a unique demonstration of an important phase of our history and technology".[62] The ship was transferred to the museum on 1 March 1978,[60] and became the Imperial War Museum's third branch, Duxford aerodrome having been acquired in 1976. In October 1998, the HMS Belfast Association was formed to reunite former members of the ship’s company.[63] The Imperial War Museum's Sound Archive also seeks to record oral history interviews with former crewmen.[60]

text: Preservation[edit]

text: Since being brought to London Belfast has twice been drydocked as part of the ship’s long-term preservation. In 1982 she was docked at Tilbury, and in June 1999 Belfast was towed to Portsmouth. This was the first time she had been to sea in 28 years and thus required a Certificate of Seaworthiness from the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.[60] While in dock, her entire hull was cleaned, blasted, and repainted, her hull blanking plates inspected and an ultrasonic survey carried out.[64] She is not expected to require further drydocking until 2020.[60] While under tow to Portsmouth she was delayed by bad weather and arrived a day late: it had been intended that she would arrive on 6 June 1999, the fifty-fifth anniversary of the Normandy landings.[65] During the maintenance work, Belfast's hull and topsides were repainted in her specific camouflage scheme officially known as Admiralty Disruptive Camouflage Type 25, which she had worn from November 1942 to July 1944. This was objected to by some, due to the anachronistic conflict between her camouflage, which reflects the majority of her active Second World War service, and her present configuration, which was the result of the ship's extended refit from January 1956 to May 1959.[60] With the establishment of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport's (DCMS) Advisory Committee on National Historic Ships in 2006, Belfast was listed as part of the National Historic Fleet.[66][nb 7]

text: On 9 May 2010, a ceremony was held aboard Belfast to mark the 65th anniversary of end of the Second World War in Europe. Veterans of the Arctic convoys were in attendance to receive medals from the Russian Ambassador Yuri Fedotov. During the ceremony it was announced that, as part of the restoration of the ship, two new masts had been manufactured at the Severnaya Verf shipyard near Saint Petersburg.[68] The production of the masts, to replace corroded originals, had been supported by a number of Russian businesses at a reported cost of £500,000.[69][nb 8] The restoration of the masts involved removing the fittings from both masts, allowing them to be individually restored. The old masts were then cut down in sections, the new masts erected, and the original fittings replaced.[72] On 19 October 2010, the new masts were dedicated at a ceremony attended by HMS Belfast veterans, by Prince Philip and officials from the Russian embassy and government.[73]

text: In 2017, it was announced that the third of the Royal Navy's Type 26 frigates would be named Belfast. At the same time, the IWM stated that the museum would be renamed as "HMS Belfast (1938)" as a means of avoiding confusion.[74][75]

text: Interpretation[edit]

text: When Belfast was first opened to the public, visitors were limited to the upper decks and forward superstructure.[60] As of 2011, nine decks are open to the public. Access to the ship is via a walkway which connects the quarterdeck with the pedestrianised footpath on the south bank of the River Thames. The Imperial War Museum's guidebook to HMS Belfast divides the ship into three broad sections.[76] The first of these, "Life on board the ship", focuses on the experience of serving at sea. Restored compartments, some populated with dressed figures, illustrate the crew's living conditions and the ship's various facilities such as the sick bay, galley, laundry, chapel, mess decks and NAAFI.[77] Since 2002, school and youth groups have been able to stay onboard Belfast overnight, sleeping in bunks on a restored 1950s mess deck.[60][78] The second section, "The inner workings", below the waterline and protected by the ship's armoured belt, contains core mechanical, electrical and communication systems. As well as the engine and boiler rooms, other compartments include the transmitting station (housing the ship's Admiralty Fire Control Table, a mechanical computer), the forward steering position and one of Belfast's six-inch shell rooms and magazines.[79] The third section, "Action stations", includes the upper deck and forward superstructure with the ship's armament, fire control, and command facilities.[80] Areas open to the public include the operations room, Admiral's bridge and gun direction platform. During 2011, two of these areas were reinterpreted. The operations room was restored to its appearance during Exercise Pony Express, a large British-Australian-American joint exercise held off North Borneo in 1961. The reinterpretation included an interactive audio-visual plotting table.[81] [nb 9] In July 2011, the interior of Y Turret, the aftmost 6-inch turret, was redisplayed using audio-visual and atmospheric effects, seeking to evoke the experience of a gunner at the Battle of North Cape.[84] To emphasise the range of the ship's armament, the forward six-inch guns of A and B Turrets are trained on the London Gateway service area on the M1 motorway, some 12.5 miles away on the outskirts of London.[85] A 4-inch gun mount and a shell hoist are kept in working order and used during blank-firing demonstrations by the Wavy Navy re-enactment group.[76][86] In addition to the various areas of the ship open to visitors, some compartments have been fitted out as dedicated exhibition space. Permanent exhibitions include "HMS Belfast in War and Peace" and "Life at Sea".[60] The cost of admission to HMS Belfast includes a multilingual audio guide.[87]

text: HMS Belfast also serves as the headquarters of the City of London Sea Cadet Corps,[88] and her prestigious location in central London as a result means she frequently has other vessels berthed alongside. In October 2007 Belfast hosted the naming ceremony of the lighthouse tender THV Galatea with the Queen and Prince Philip in attendance.[89]

text: 2011 accident[edit]

text: On 29 November 2011, two workmen suffered minor injuries after a section of gangway, connected to the ship, collapsed during renovation works.[90] The ship was closed to visitors following the accident.[91] An investigation later established that the collapse of the gangway had been caused by a subcontractor cutting through the gangway's structure during refurbishment work.[92] Belfast re-opened on 18 May 2012.[93]

text: The closure delayed the construction of a new two-storey bank-side pavilion to replace Belfast's existing retail and admissions building. The structure, for which planning permission was received in October 2011, provides a ground floor café, shop and admissions area, and a rooftop bar. Previously expected to be complete in summer 2012,[94] the structure opened in April 2013.[93]

text: Notes[edit]

text:
Jump up ^ Parham recorded an oral account of his career in May 1976, which was later acquired by the Imperial War Museum.[28]
Jump up ^ A 15-inch gun from HMS Roberts is one of the pair now on display outside the Imperial War Museum.[37]
Jump up ^ The admiral is not identified in Wingate (2004), but may have been Rear Admiral John Higgins, for whom Juneau was flagship.
Jump up ^ Operation Seahorse was named for the ship's badge, which shows a seahorse (which also appears on the City of Belfast's coat of arms) wearing a red gorget over waves.[14]
Jump up ^ Amalgamated into the Royal Irish Regiment in 1992.[60]
Jump up ^ The Society operates the amateur radio callsign GB2RN from the ship's bridge wireless office.[61]
Jump up ^ Belfast is one of three vessels with such listing in London, the other two being the tea clipper Cutty Sark and the coastal steamer SS Robin.[67]
Jump up ^ The Russian companies included United Industrial Corporation (OPK), SeverStal and Sovcomflot. Assistance was also received from Lloyd's Register.[70][71]
Jump up ^ The reinterpretation was supported by £150,000 from DCMS and the Wolfson Foundation.[82][83]

tag: ol


document_title: United States in World War I

question_text: who did the u.s. fight in world war i

question_tokens: who did the u.s. fight in world war i

text: United States in World War I

text: Entry[edit]

text: The American entry into World War I came on April 6, 1917, after more than two and a half years of efforts by President Woodrow Wilson to keep the United States out of the war. Apart from an Anglophile element urging early support for the British, American public opinion reflected that of the president: the sentiment for neutrality was particularly strong among Irish Americans, German Americans and Scandinavian Americans,[3] as well as among church leaders and among women in general. On the other hand, even before World War I had broken out, American opinion had been more negative toward Germany than towards any other country in Europe.[4] Over time, especially after reports of atrocities in Belgium in 1914 and following the sinking of the passenger liner RMS Lusitania in 1915, the American people increasingly came to see Germany as the aggressor in Europe.

text: As U.S. President, it was Wilson who made the key policy decisions over foreign affairs: while the country was at peace, the domestic economy ran on a laissez-faire basis, with American banks making huge loans to Britain and France — funds that were in large part used to buy munitions, raw materials and food from across the Atlantic. Until 1917, Wilson made minimal preparations for a land war and kept the United States Army on a small peacetime footing, despite increasing demands for enhanced preparedness. He did however expand the United States Navy.

text: In 1917, with Russia experiencing political upheaval following widespread disillusionment there over the war, and with Britain and France low on credit, Germany appeared to have the upper hand in Europe,[5] while the Ottoman Empire clung to its possessions in the Middle East. In the same year, Germany decided to resume unrestricted submarine warfare against any vessel approaching British waters; this attempt to starve Britain into surrender was balanced against the knowledge that it would almost certainly bring the United States into the war. Germany also made a secret offer to help Mexico regain territories lost in the Mexican–American War in an encoded telegram known as the Zimmermann Telegram, which was intercepted by British Intelligence. Publication of that communique outraged Americans just as German U-boats started sinking American merchant ships in the North Atlantic. Wilson then asked Congress for "a war to end all wars" that would "make the world safe for democracy", and Congress voted to declare war on Germany on April 6, 1917.[6] On December 7, 1917, the U.S. declared war on Austria-Hungary.[7][8] U.S. troops began arriving on the Western Front in large numbers in 1918.

text: Neutrality[edit]

text: After the war began in 1914, the United States proclaimed a policy of neutrality despite president Woodrow Wilson's antipathies against Germany. Early in the war, the United States started to favor the British and their allies.[9] President Wilson aimed to broker a peace and sent his top aide, Colonel House, on repeated missions to the two sides, but each remained so confident of victory that they ignored peace proposals.

text: When the German U-boat U-20 sank the British liner Lusitania on 7 May 1915 with 128 US citizens aboard, Wilson demanded an end to German attacks on passenger ships, and warned that the US would not tolerate unrestricted submarine warfare in violation of international law and of human rights.[citation needed] Wilson's Secretary of State, William Jennings Bryan, resigned, believing that the President's protests against the German use of U-boat attacks conflicted with America's official commitment to neutrality. On the other hand, Wilson came under pressure from war hawks led by former president Theodore Roosevelt, who denounced German acts as "piracy",[10] and from British delegations under Cecil Spring Rice and Sir Edward Grey.

text: U.S. Public opinion reacted with outrage to the suspected German sabotage of Black Tom in Jersey City, New Jersey on 30 July 1916, and to the Kingsland explosion on 11 January 1917 in present-day Lyndhurst, New Jersey.[11]

text: Crucially, by the spring of 1917 President Wilson's official commitment to neutrality had finally unraveled. Wilson realized he needed to enter the war in order to shape the peace and implement his vision for a League of Nations at the Paris Peace Conference.[12]

text: Public opinion[edit]

text: American public opinion was divided, with most Americans until early 1917 largely of the opinion that the United States should stay out of the war.  Opinion changed gradually, partly in response to German actions in Belgium and the Lusitania, partly as German Americans lost influence, and partly in response to Wilson's position that America had to play a role to make the world safe for democracy.[13]

text: In the general public, there was little if any support for entering the war on the side of Germany. The great majority of German Americans, as well as Scandinavian Americans, wanted the United States to remain neutral; however, at the outbreak of war, thousands of US citizens had tried to enlist in the German army.[14][15] The Irish Catholic community, based in the large cities and often in control of the Democratic Party apparatus, was strongly hostile to helping Britain in any way, especially after the Easter uprising of 1916 in Ireland.[16] Most of the Protestant church leaders in the United States, regardless of their theology, favoured pacifistic solutions whereby the United States would broker a peace.[17] Most of the leaders of the women's movement, typified by Jane Addams, likewise sought pacifistic solutions.[18] The most prominent opponent of war was industrialist Henry Ford, who personally financed and led a peace ship to Europe to try to negotiate among the belligerents; no negotiations resulted.[19]

text: Britain had significant support among intellectuals, Yankees, and families with close ties to Britain.[20] The most prominent leader was Samuel Insull of Chicago, a leading industrialist who had emigrated from England. Insull funded many propaganda efforts, and financed young Americans who wished to fight by joining the Canadian military,[21] Canada at that time being a Dominion of the British Empire.[22]

text: Preparedness movement[edit]

text: By 1915, Americans were paying much more attention to the war. The sinking of the Lusitania aroused furious denunciations of German brutality.[citation needed] By 1915, in Eastern cities a new "Preparedness" movement emerged. It argued that the United States needed to build up immediately strong naval and land forces for defensive purposes; an unspoken assumption was that America would fight sooner or later. The driving forces behind Preparedness were all Republicans, notably General Leonard Wood, ex-president Theodore Roosevelt, and former secretaries of war Elihu Root and Henry Stimson; they enlisted many of the nation's most prominent bankers, industrialists, lawyers and scions of prominent families. Indeed, there emerged an "Atlanticist" foreign policy establishment, a group of influential Americans drawn primarily from upper-class lawyers, bankers, academics, and politicians of the Northeast, committed to a strand of Anglophile internationalism.[23]

text: The Preparedness movement had what political scientists call a "realism" philosophy of world affairs—they believed that economic strength and military muscle were more decisive than idealistic crusades focused on causes like democracy and national self-determination. Emphasizing over and over the weak state of national defences, they showed that the United States' 100,000-man Army, even augmented by the 112,000-strong National Guard, was outnumbered 20 to one by the German army; similarly in 1915, the armed forces of Great Britain and the British Empire, France, Russia, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Ottoman Empire, Italy, Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia, Belgium, Japan and Greece were all larger and more experienced than the United States military.[24]

text: They called for UMT or "universal military service" under which the 600,000 men who turned 18 every year would be required to spend six months in military training, and then be assigned to reserve units. The small regular army would primarily be a training agency. Public opinion, however, was not willing to go that far.[25]

text: Both the regular army and the Preparedness leaders had a low opinion of the National Guard, which it saw as politicized, provincial, poorly armed, ill trained, too inclined to idealistic crusading (as against Spain in 1898), and too lacking in understanding of world affairs. The National Guard on the other hand was securely rooted in state and local politics, with representation from a very broad cross section of the US political economy. The Guard was one of the nation's few institutions that (in some northern states) accepted black men on an equal footing with white men.

text: Democrats respond[edit]

text: This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (September 2016) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

text: The Democratic party saw the Preparedness movement as a threat. Roosevelt, Root and Wood were prospective Republican presidential candidates. More subtly, the Democrats were rooted in localism that appreciated the National Guard, and the voters were hostile to the rich and powerful in the first place. Working with the Democrats who controlled Congress, Wilson was able to sidetrack the Preparedness forces. Army and Navy leaders were forced to testify before Congress to the effect that the nation's military was in excellent shape.

text: In reality, neither the US Army nor US Navy was in shape for war in terms of manpower, size, military hardware or experience. The Navy had fine ships but Wilson had been using them to threaten Mexico, and the fleet's readiness had suffered. The crews of the Texas and the New York, the two newest and largest battleships, had never fired a gun, and the morale of the sailors was low. The Army and Navy air forces were tiny in size. Despite the flood of new weapons systems unveiled in the war in Europe, the Army was paying scant attention. For example, it was making no studies of trench warfare, poison gas or tanks, and was unfamiliar with the rapid evolution of aerial warfare. The Democrats in Congress tried to cut the military budget in 1915. The Preparedness movement effectively exploited the surge of outrage over the "Lusitania" in May 1915, forcing the Democrats to promise some improvements to the military and naval forces. Wilson, less fearful of the Navy, embraced a long-term building program designed to make the fleet the equal of the British Royal Navy by the mid-1920s, although this would not come to pass until after World War II.[26] "Realism" was at work here; the admirals were Mahanians and they therefore wanted a surface fleet of heavy battleships second to none—that is, equal to Great Britain. The facts of submarine warfare (which necessitated destroyers, not battleships) and the possibilities of imminent war with Germany (or with Britain, for that matter), were simply ignored.

text: Wilson's decision touched off a firestorm.[27]  Secretary of War Lindley Garrison adopted many of the proposals of the Preparedness leaders, especially their emphasis on a large federal reserves and abandonment of the National Guard. Garrison's proposals not only outraged the provincial politicians of both parties, they also offended a strongly held belief shared by the liberal wing of the Progressive movement, that was, that warfare always had a hidden economic motivation. Specifically, they warned the chief warmongers were New York bankers (such as J. P. Morgan) with millions at risk, profiteering munition makers (such as Bethlehem Steel, which made armor, and DuPont, which made powder) and unspecified industrialists searching for global markets to control.  Antiwar critics blasted them.  These selfish special interests were too powerful, especially, Senator La Follette noted, in the conservative wing of the Republican Party. The only road to peace was disarmament in the eyes of many.

text: National debate[edit]

text: Garrison's plan unleashed the fiercest battle in peacetime history over the relationship of military planning to national goals. In peacetime, War Department arsenals and Navy yards manufactured nearly all munitions that lacked civilian uses, including warships, artillery, naval guns, and shells. Items available on the civilian market, such as food, horses, saddles, wagons, and uniforms were always purchased from civilian contractors.

text: Peace leaders like Jane Addams of Hull House and David Starr Jordan of Stanford University redoubled their efforts, and now turned their voices against the President because he was "sowing the seeds of militarism, raising up a military and naval caste." Many ministers, professors, farm spokesmen and labor union leaders joined in, with powerful support from a band of four dozen southern Democrats in Congress who took control of the House Military Affairs Committee. Wilson, in deep trouble, took his cause to the people in a major speaking tour in early 1916, a warm-up for his reelection campaign that fall.

text: Wilson seemed to have won over the middle classes, but had little impact on the largely ethnic working classes and the deeply isolationist farmers. Congress still refused to budge, so Wilson replaced Garrison as Secretary of War with Newton Baker, the Democratic mayor of Cleveland and an outspoken opponent of preparedness.[28] The upshot was a compromise passed in May 1916, as the war raged on and Berlin was debating whether America was so weak it could be ignored. The Army was to double in size to 11,300 officers and 208,000 men, with no reserves, and a National Guard that would be enlarged in five years to 440,000 men. Summer camps on the Plattsburg model were authorized for new officers, and the government was given $20 million to build a nitrate plant of its own. Preparedness supporters were downcast, the antiwar people were jubilant. The United States would now be too weak to go to war. Colonel Robert L. Bullard privately complained that "Both sides [Britain and Germany] treat us with scorn and contempt; our fool, smug conceit of superiority has been exploded in our faces and deservedly.".[29] The House gutted the naval plans as well, defeating a "big navy" plan by 189 to 183, and cancelling the battleships. The battle of Jutland (May 31/June 1, 1916) saw the main German High Seas Fleet engage in a monumental yet inconclusive clash with the far stronger Grand Fleet of the Royal Navy. Arguing this battle proved the validity of Mahanian doctrine, the navalists took control in the Senate, broke the House coalition, and authorized a rapid three-year buildup of all classes of warships.[citation needed] A new weapons system, naval aviation, received $3.5 million, and the government was authorized to build its own armour-plate factory. The very weakness of American military power encouraged Berlin to start its unrestricted submarine attacks in 1917. It knew this meant war with America, but it could discount the immediate risk because the US Army was negligible and the new warships would not be at sea until 1919 by which time the war would be over, Germany thought, with Germany victorious. The notion that armaments led to war was turned on its head: refusal to arm in 1916 led to war in 1917.

text: War declared[edit]

text: In January 1917, Germany resumed unrestricted submarine warfare. The German Foreign minister, Arthur Zimmermann invited revolution-torn Mexico to join the war as Germany's ally against the United States in the Zimmermann Telegram. In return, the Germans would send Mexico money and help it recover the territories of Texas, New Mexico and Arizona that Mexico lost during the Mexican–American War 70 years earlier.[30] British intelligence intercepted the telegram and passed the information on to Washington. Wilson released the Zimmerman note to the public and Americans saw it as a casus belli—a cause for war.

text: At first, Wilson tried to maintain neutrality while fighting off the submarines by arming American merchant ships with guns powerful enough to sink German submarines on the surface (but useless when the U-boats were under water). After submarines sank seven US merchant ships, Wilson finally went to Congress calling for a declaration of war on Germany, which Congress voted on April 6, 1917.[31]

text: As a result of the Russian February Revolution in 1917, the Tsar abdicated and was replaced by a Russian Provisional Government. This helped overcome Wilson's reluctance to having the US fight alongside a country ruled by an absolutist monarch. Pleased by the Provisional Government's pro-war stance, the US accorded the new government diplomatic recognition on March 9, 1917.[32]

text: Although the United States declared war on Germany on April 6, 1917, it did not initially declare war on the other Central Powers, a state of affairs that Woodrow Wilson described as an "embarrassing obstacle" in his State of the Union speech.[33] Congress declared war on the Austro-Hungarian Empire on December 7, 1917,[34] but never made declarations of war against the other Central Powers, Bulgaria, the Ottoman Empire or the various co-belligerents allied with the Central Powers.[35] Thus, the United States remained uninvolved in the military campaigns in central and eastern Europe, the Middle East, the Caucasus, North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and the Pacific.

text: Home front[edit]

text: The home front saw a systematic mobilization of the entire population and the entire economy to produce the soldiers, food supplies, munitions, and money needed to win the war. Although the United States entered the war in 1917, there had been very little planning, or even recognition of the problems that the British and other Allies had to solve on their home fronts. As a result, the level of confusion was high in the first 12 months, then efficiency took control.[36]

text: The war came in the midst of the Progressive Era, when efficiency and expertise were highly valued. Therefore, the federal government set up a multitude of temporary agencies with 500,000 to 1,000,000 new employees to bring together the expertise necessary to redirect the economy into the production of munitions and food necessary for the war, as well as for propaganda purposes.[37]

text: Food[edit]

text: The United States Food Administration under Herbert Hoover  launched a massive campaign to teach Americans to economize on their food budgets and grow  victory gardens in their backyards, where crops were produced for US soldiers.  It managed the nation's food distribution and prices.[38]

text: Propaganda[edit]

text: Crucial to US participation was the sweeping domestic propaganda campaign executed by the Committee on Public Information, overseen by George Creel.[39] The campaign consisted of tens of thousands of government-selected community leaders giving brief carefully scripted pro-war speeches at thousands of public gatherings.[40][41] Along with other branches of government and private vigilante groups like the American Protective League, it also included the general repression and harassment of people either opposed to American entry into the war or of German heritage.[42] Rumors about a German-induced attempt to start uprising among Black Americans caused a wave of lynchings to occur in the Southern United States.[43] Other forms of propaganda included newsreels, photos, large-print posters (designed by several well-known illustrators of the day, including Louis D. Fancher and Henry Reuterdahl), magazine and newspaper articles, and billboards.[44]

text: Children[edit]

text: The nation placed a great importance on the role of children, teaching them patriotism and national service and asking them to encourage war support and educate the public about the importance of the war. The Boy Scouts of America helped distribute war pamphlets, helped sell war bonds, and helped to drive nationalism and support for the war.[45]

text: Army and Navy[edit]

text: As late as 1917, the United States maintained only a small army, one which was in fact smaller than thirteen of the nations and empires already active in the war. After the passage of the Selective Service Act in 1917, it drafted 4 million men into military service.[46] By the summer of 1918, about 2 million US soldiers had arrived in France, about half of whom eventually saw front-line service; by the Armistice of November 11 approximately 10,000 fresh soldiers were arriving in France daily.[47] In 1917, Congress gave US citizenship to Puerto Ricans when they were drafted to participate in World War I, as part of the Jones Act. In the end, Germany miscalculated the United States' influence on the outcome of the conflict, believing it would be many more months before US troops would arrive and overestimating the effectiveness of U-boats in slowing the American buildup.[48]

text: The United States Navy sent a battleship group to Scapa Flow to join with the British Grand Fleet, destroyers to Queenstown, Ireland and submarines to help guard convoys. Several regiments of Marines were also dispatched to France. The British and French wanted US units used to reinforce their troops already on the battle lines and not to waste scarce shipping on bringing over supplies. The US rejected the first proposition and accepted the second. General John J. Pershing, American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) commander, refused to break up US units to serve as mere reinforcements for British Empire and French units. As an exception, he did allow African-American combat regiments to fight in French divisions. The Harlem Hellfighters fought as part of the French 16th Division, earning a unit Croix de Guerre for their actions at Château-Thierry, Belleau Wood, and Séchault.[49]

text: Impact of US forces on the war[edit]

text: On the battlefields of France in spring 1918, the war-weary Allied armies enthusiastically greeted the fresh American troops. They arrived at the rate of 10,000 a day,[47] at a time when the Germans were unable to replace their losses. The Americans won a victory at Cantigny, then again in defensive stands at Chateau-Thierry and Belleau Wood. The Americans helped the British Empire, French and Portuguese forces defeat and turn back the powerful final German offensive (Spring Offensive of March to July, 1918), and most importantly, the Americans played a role in the Allied final offensive (Hundred Days Offensive of August to November). However, many American commanders used the same flawed tactics which the British, French, Germans and others had abandoned early in the war, and so many American offensives were not particularly effective. Pershing continued to commit troops to these full- frontal attacks, resulting in high casualties against experienced veteran German and Austrian-Hungarian units. Nevertheless, the infusion of new and fresh US troops greatly strengthened the Allies' strategic position and boosted morale. The Allies achieved victory over Germany on November 11, 1918 after German morale had collapsed both at home and on the battlefield.[50][51]

text: After the war[edit]

text: The government promptly cancelled wartime contracts, ended the  draft, and started to bring home its troops from Europe as fast as transport became available.[52]   However there was no GI Bill or financial or educational benefits for veterans, and the lack became a major political issue, especially for the large veterans' groups such as the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the new American Legion.[53]   The readjustment period was marked by soaring unemployment, massive strikes, and race riots in 1919. The public demanded a return to "normalcy", and repudiated Wilson with the election of conservative Republican Warren G. Harding.[54]